The Troy Keith Student Leadership Award honors a graduating senior who has made significant contributions to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and/or asexual communities at SUNY Geneseo. These contributions will have made campus a safer and more inclusive, welcoming, and respectful community for LGBTQ+ students, faculty, and/or staff.

While pursuing their Bachelor of Arts in Biological Anthropology, Troy ’18 engaged in social activism and held positions in multiple student organizations. They were the Public Relations Liaison and later Co-President of Students Against Social Injustice, and served as Vice President of the Pride Alliance. With Troy in mind, the college created the position of Social Justice Student Connector and allowed them to develop a curriculum that fostered positive connections between faculty and students of color. As a Safe Zone Trainer, they trained campus administrators and students each semester to increase awareness and acceptance of LGBTQIA+ individuals. Troy was dedicated to promoting the well-being of the LGBTQIA+ community at Geneseo and back home, and advocated for the rights of all marginalized individuals.

This award recognizes any current undergraduate student who has made significant contributions and improvements at SUNY Geneseo in one or more of the following ways:

- Serving as a leader, role model, advisor, or mentor to LGBTQ+ peers

- Advocating for changes to policies or procedures that exclude or marginalize LGBTQ+ communities

- Advocating for the inclusion of LGBTQ+ perspectives, issues, groups, or individuals in spaces, programs, and decision-making

- Demonstrating leadership in an organization, committee, initiative, or program that serves LGBTQ+ communities

- Through active involvement in LGBTQ+ communities, organizations, and issues, including those pertaining to the intersections of gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, ability, nationality, age, religion, class, or culture

- Initiating and/or implementing educational programs or initiatives about LGBTQ+ inclusion, issues, or communities

- Conducting outreach to other constituencies on campus and in the community with the goal of forming collaborative relationships that benefit LGBTQ+ communities

Nominations should include specific, demonstrable examples of how the nominee has met one or more of the above criteria. While off-campus advocacy and activism may strengthen an application, this award is intended to recognize on-campus contributions first and foremost.